August 29, 2008

Private-sector fundraising hits high marks, garners national award

Of that amount, gifts to the university reached $201 million, exceeding the year's fundraising goal.

Many of the gifts benefitted Access and Success, a funding drive for scholarships, programs and athletics, including Mackey Arena, which launched in April 2007.

Phase I of the campaign includes the $99.5 million renovation and expansion of Mackey Arena. Purdue has raised nearly $24 million of the $32 million goal in private donations for Mackey.

The second phase of the campaign includes student scholarships and programs. More than $64 million has already been raised toward the $304 million goal for Phase II.

In recognition of Purdue's fundraising success in the previous three years, the Council for Advancement and Support of Education, also known as CASE, recently awarded the university a WealthEngine Award for Educational Fundraising in the overall performance category.

University President France A. Córdova said the new campaign is receiving widespread support and recognition.

"Access and Success has struck a deep and resounding chord with the many people who believe, as we do, that good students should have access to a Purdue education and the support to succeed in their academic endeavors," Córdova said. "We are extremely thankful to our alumni, campus community, friends and corporate partners who have helped move this initiative forward. We also are proud of our advancement staff and the recognition they have received from CASE for their fundraising efforts."

The CASE awards program recognizes overall performance and overall improvement based on data submitted to the Council for Aid to Education's "Voluntary Support of Education" survey.

The survey is conducted annually by CAE, an independent subsidiary of the Rand Corp., and co-sponsored by CASE and the National Association of Independent Schools.

A volunteer panel of judges selects winners based on an examination of three years of prior data for several criteria: the pattern of growth in total support; contributors to the total support figure; overall breadth in program areas; pattern of growth in each program area; pattern of donor growth among alumni and individual donors; impact of the 12 largest gifts on total support; total support in relation to the alumni base; and the type of institution.

Judges used these factors to select overall performance winners by recognizing institutions that showed solid program growth; breadth in the base of support; and other indications of a mature, well-maintained program.

Murray Blackwelder, senior vice president for advancement, said the award showcases the efforts of both Purdue's advancement staff and the many alumni and friends of the university.

"Of the 427 colleges and universities considered by CASE, only 37 received WealthEngine awards for overall performance," Blackwelder said. "Our successes are the successes of the Purdue family. We would not be able to reach our goals without the confidence they place in this university."

The $201 million raised during the fiscal year that ran from July 1, 2007, to June 30, 2008, includes $84 million in net cash and equivalents, $13 million in gifts-in-kind and real estate, $9 million in irrevocable deferred gifts (at face value), and $95 million in new pledge commitments. Research grants from private-sector sources generated an additional $46 million.

The number of gifts received this past fiscal year totaled 104,234, which is above the goal of 100,000 for the year.

Support from Purdue alumni and former students totaled nearly $93 million; corporations gave nearly $37 million; private foundations gave nearly $41 million, and friends and other organizations combined to give another $30 million.

Blackwelder said that giving was strong given the lapse of time between the end of the $1.7 billion Campaign for Purdue and the beginning of the Access and Success campaign.

"We are very pleased that we exceeded our goals this year in spite of the fact that we had just completed our largest fundraising drive ever with the Campaign for Purdue ending on June 30, 2007," Blackwelder said. "It's fairly common for giving to trend down after a campaign in which so many of our most loyal donors gave large gifts. In addition, we had one large pledge in the 2006-2007 report which, of course, made that period's $394 million total higher than usual."

The top gifts and pledges made during the 2007 fiscal year were:

* $13.45 million from the Regenstrief Foundation supporting the Regenstrief Center for Healthcare Engineering, the Cancer Care Engineering Program, and Patient Health and Telehealth Research.

* $9 million from the Lilly Endowment funding the Strengthening Supports for Military Families Project and the Human Development Institute.

* $5 million from Michael J. and Katherine R. Birck for the Mackey Arena renovation and expansion.

* $5 million pledged by Charles E. Wallrodt to establish the Charles E. Wallrodt Scholarship Fund in Electrical and Computer Engineering.

* $5 million from Roger B. Gatewood to the Ray W. Herrick Laboratories building fund, including support for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification.

* $4 million pledged by Ralph E. and Bettye J. Bailey as the lead gift for a new Purdue Musical Organizations building.

* $3.4 million in UGS software from GM Partners for the Advancement of Collaborative Engineering Education to the College of Technology and School of Civil Engineering.

* $3 million pledged from the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership Foundation to fund the Indiana Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Resource Network at Purdue.

* $3 million pledged by Howard L. and Elizabeth W. Chapman for the Chapman Scholars Fund Endowment.

* $3 million pledged by Heddy H. Kurz as the lead gift for the Herman and Heddy Kurz Purdue Technology Center.

* $3 million in equipment from IBM supporting Information Technology at Purdue.

* $3 million in pledges from Thomas E. and Joy Spurgeon supporting the Mackey Arena renovation and expansion.

* $2 million pledged by an anonymous donor supporting the Krannert School of Management.

* $2 million pledged by Anshel J. Schiff and Susan K. Welch to establish the Anshel Schiff Professorship in Engineering.

* $2 million pledged by John H. Smith supporting the President's Fund.

* $2 million pledged by Steven A. and Linda M. Webster for the Krannert Building and Center Renovations Campaign.

* $2 million pledged by Drew C. and Brittany M. Brees supporting the Mackey Arena renovation and expansion and the Drew and Brittany Brees Student-Athlete Academic Center.

* $2 million pledged by Richard Gilliam and Kyle A. Thomas for Purdue Libraries and the College of Technology.

Writer: Tanya Brown, (765) 494-2079, tanyabrown@purdue.edu

Sources:   Dan Gentry, (765) 494-7512, dgentry@purdue.edu

Murray Blackwelder, (765) 496-2144, mblackwelder@purdue.edu

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

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